Ask HN: When caffeine stops working, do you turn to anti-narcolepsy pills? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: When caffeine stops working, do you turn to anti-narcolepsy pills?

2 points0xChain26 comments

Caffeine no longer keeps me awake. I could inject pure caffeine to my veins and nothing would happen.

I know that ADHD meds like adderall and anti-narcolepsy pills like Modafinil are all the rage in tech. But is it worth developing a dependency on them?

Or, should I just accept feeling like a tired potato?

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See a doctor and take their advice, not the internets. They'll probably tell you diet, exercise and sleep.

More personally what I did with my caffeine problems was consume less and restrict the time I have it. One good coffee in the morning is enough, the withdrawal will suck but you'll sleep better in the long run. And the trick to not feeling tired all the time is to sleep well and not consume a bunch of nasty stuff in the afternoon and evening that your body can't handle well in excess.

Psychoactive chemicals aren't a solution if you don't have a problem that they can really help. That's why you see a doctor or three to determine if it's worth the risks.

Yes, that makes sense. I probably should consult a nutritionist or someone first before turning to pharmaceuticals. Thanks.

It does seem like those who use Adderall/Modafinil are increasingly switched on. It’s tough to compete against them.

Though, maybe that’s a short-term effect and the overall byproduct in the end isn’t worth those short gains.

I like to take occasional tolerance breaks from coffee completely.

I also like to drink much less than the max before I start feeling bad, so that if I have a really long day I can drink more than usual and really feel the effects, without needing to have so much that I have a bad trip(Some of the Starbucks drinks will make me feel like crap with just one of them).

There seems to be studies saying coffee drinkers live longer, and it tastes great, so I do enjoy a daily cup or two of coffee or tea, but I would not want a lifestyle where I couldn't have no caffeine at all most days if I did want to.

I mention this one a lot, but removing a lot of personal side projects from my life has helped me tremendously. I think of it kind of like decluttering, but in the time domain.

I've even mostly changed my stance on open source from "Always use it" to "Avoid things that cause vendor lock in, otherwise prefer FOSS if convenient, but don't hesitate to use proprietary".

Of course you might not have easily discardable projects to free up time with, if you're busy with work or study grinding.

I use Modafinil and Ritalin from time to time, when I want a good working session. I would not abuse it, but if you take doses smaller than the recommended dose they give to people with real symptoms it's probably fine, or should I say it becomes a viable cost/benefits analysis.

I mostly do it because I like the thrill of building something in one weekend. I would not like to live a life where I have to use it to keep up with work though.

Time to quit cold turkey. It'll hurt like hell for 3-5 days and then you'll be kinda fine, just feeling like you don't have a soul anymore. Drink tea if you can to compensate.

Then after the pause, go back to drinking 1-2 cups per day and never more.

You can half your caffeine intake each day for no severe effects, YMMV.

Of course. But not coffee intake. Coffee is way more than just black water with caffeine.

> Caffeine no longer keeps me awake.

Reframe your question starting from this. You should not be needing caffeine to stay awake as a rule and normal baseline in your life. Solve that problem before thinking of starting with a stronger drug.

Caffeine is supposed to block the receptors that tells your body you are tired. Which is why I’m wondering how it could no longer be effective. Though, maybe a “reset” through stopping coffee, as some other have suggested, is all that’s needed.

It's expected. Your body adapts to constant use. Read about tolerance and resistance to drugs to see how this works.

I used to drink about 3 liters of tea, daily, for years. And I slept just fine. Then I stopped drinking tea. If I have tea now, which is very rare, even early in the morning, I know a sleepless night is what's going to happen.

Are you asking if you should abuse prescription drugs on hackernews? You are basically asking if meth is a good substitute to coffee. How the fuck is this thread still up.

No, I would legally obtain prescriptions by consulting with my doctor. Where are you getting the idea that I would abuse them for illicit use?

Because you are writing about it like you would. You are writing about taking amphetamines like it’s just another Red Bull. You got serious problems besides feeling „groggy“.

Yes, I do, physically. I quickly lose attention, cannot complete tasks, and drift off in naps regularly. That’s why I’m asking if others have resorted to those medications (legally obtained of course) to remedy similar issues when coffee isn’t enough.

Yeah, go dx yourself with ADHD instead of letting a professional figure out what’s wrong but hey at least you might be awake when your heart stops.

You need a lifestyle switch

Listen to Andrew Huberman. Caffeine just blocks your adenosine receptors. Take a month off.

I have heard of Dr Huberman, but have not yet looked into his work (books?). Thanks for the tip. I’ll check him out.

Really? Are you trolling or just naive?

Talk to your doctors.

Not trolling. Just asking if others have used them. I’ve met with my doctor and took an ADHD test to see if Adderall is right for me. But before I start taking a pharmaceutical, I wanted to get opinions from others who have. Coffee no longer helps me stay alert or focused. So, I’m wondering if other ADHD suffers have found success in such medications.

It reads hard like you looked at the symptoms online and lied to your doc to get drugs. Despicable for everyone who really is sick.

How could I lie my way into passing such a test with my doctor? I’m not sure why you’re slugging such baseless accusations at me. And the fact I’ve repeatedly said I am questioning even resorting to Adderall is proof enough against your defamatory comment that I just want “to get drugs”. I’m genuinely curious how others who do have prescriptions for such medications are fairing.

Maybe stop writing about it like it’s candy or that you want it to compete with others. How you could cheat on a test that you want to pass? On which are literally thousands of posts on the net on how to cheat on it. That’s your question on hackernews? That’s why you made a throwaway account? The jumping from one comment to another from „of course I would ask a nutrionist“ to „I took a test at my doc“. Yeah, how would I come to the conclusion that you are lying.

Try to do a digital-free holiday (no computer, phone etc) for 1-2 weeks. See if you attention span or focus is messed with by constant distractions (or the often called "dopamine addiction") instead of caffeine. Or instead, try to meditate at least 20mins a day for a couple of weeks. I personally don't think doctors would ever advice this, as the whole attention loss/focus/internet addiction thing is to new and not widely researched.

This is good advice. Thank you. I hadn’t considered possible (radiation?) interferences from my tech devices could be disruptive to my focus, alertness, etc. Not to mention, the overload from social media. Although, I don’t use platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat. So, those sensory bombardments would be limited. Ideally, the more holistic approach is what I’m after. But, if that’s not possible, then my options are with what I wrote.

I suffer from legitimate ADHD. My Adderall makes me tired and relaxed and less impulsive but focused. You sound like you are drug seeking. I would recommend that you go cold turkey from everything and see if you still feel the same way that you say you feel. You seem to be perfectly functional in your job and in life. You also seem to be comparing yourself to others who are drug abusing and who you think are outperforming you. This does not mean you have ADHD. My ADHD makes me non-functional in life and with medication I am barely functional. Sorry to be mean but you're a joke.

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